


Lost Then Found

by coolgirl3890



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Fenris makes a friend, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-23
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-10 16:18:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7852291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolgirl3890/pseuds/coolgirl3890
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It all started when Fenris found a dog wandering outside his apartment. </p>
<p>A late birthday-gift fic for Emile, an awesome writer and friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lost Then Found

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Emile](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emile/gifts).



It wasn’t odd to see dogs wandering around at all. Fenris quickly picked up on the fact that most people kept pets, most commonly dogs, once arriving in Kirkwall. Tevinters were either too poor to afford the costs of a pet, or the rich had dainty, exotic animals and got servants to take care of the, well, the shit parts. The dog in question was a sturdy and hardy Mabari. Fenris had seen Mabari in Tevinter, but they weren't nearly as common as they seemed to be in the South.

 

But what was odd was that this mabari Fenris was looking at through the window of his apartment had no leash and, to his knowledge, no owner. The big animal was walking down the sidewalk, its tongue lolling out of its mouth like it hadn’t a care in the world. Though, being a dog, it probably didn’t have a care. The easiest explanation would be that the dog was trained to be off-leash and the owner was somewhere nearby. Yet when Fenris looked down both ends of the sidewalk, he didn’t see a person in sight. Odd but not odd, since it was the afternoon on a summer weekend, meaning people would rather spend their time at the beach or a barbeque with friends, or whatever well-off humans did with their spare time in the hot season and not on some residential street in Low Town. Odd in the sense that if this dog truly did have a owner, said person would be following close behind or besides the slobbering beast.

 

What if the dog was a stray? It looked too well-fed to be one though, it probably weighed more than most elves back home, Fenris thought with his usual bitter humour. He came to the conclusion that the Mabari was lost and the owner was somehow so blind they didn’t notice a two hundred pound beast slip out the door right under their nose. Oh well, their loss. He went back to the book he was struggling to read, but the dog lingered at the back of his mind.

 

Fenris didn’t consider himself as a person with a high moral compass, firmly believing he needed to help himself first before anyone else. He was a self-proclaimed fugitive after all, with little money or time to help others. But that was the nice part about dogs, he supposed. All you needed to give them was a few pats on the head and a little bit of food and they were by your side forever. No wonder dogs were the preferred pet. In a world where someone could either lend you a helping hand and stab you with the same one, dogs didn’t have such motives. If they didn’t like you, they showed it outright. Fenris could only wish people had the courtesy to be more like that, it would’ve made his escape, and his life overall, much simpler. 

 

For that, Fenris figured the mutt shouldn’t suffer for its owner’s stupidity. He sighed and placed the book down on the table, it wasn’t like he was getting much progress done with it anyway. Besides, his mind was already made up the moment he saw the dog alone. The elf peeked out the window, slightly relieved that the dog was still there. It was currently urinating on a tree. Lovely. At least it wasn’t stupid enough to wander into the road. He got up, grabbed his keys, and threw on some much dreaded shoes that humans would give him nasty looks about if he wasn’t wearing any.

 

“Time to go do my good deed of the day.” He mumbled under his breath as he locked the door to his apartment.

 

. . . .

 

To Fenris’s relief, the mutt was still there when he came on the sidewalk. The dog’s back was turned to him but he could clearly see the red leather of a collar on its neck. Good, so it wasn't a stray. That saved him the trouble of bringing it to the nearest animal shelter. Now all he needed to do was get the dog’s attention. Fenris cleared his throat and whistled for good measure. The mabari’s ears perked up attentively.

 

“Come here, uh, boy?”

 

Yes it was definitely a boy, confirmed when Fenris tilted his head down slightly to the side. 

 

The dog turned around at his call, his stupid, adorable tongue still hanging outside his mouth. He happily trotted towards him with no hesitance.

 

Another reason Fenris liked dogs were how nonjudgemental they were. Dogs didn't care about your white hair, the tattoos carved into your skin against your will, or that you were even an elf. The aura he gave off that would make others, even his own race, walk on the opposite street as him was something that dogs didn't seem to have the capacity to understand. Fenris was pulled from his deep thinking by the wet lick of the stray’s tongue on his hand. 

 

“Now who is your owner?” Fenris asked the dog as if he would verbally answer. Luckily, the collar was there to give the answer for him. Fenris flipped the red leather around until the metal tag was facing him.

 

**KNIGHT**

 

So that was the dog’s name. At least it wasn't as ridiculous as some of the names he heard humans call their pets. Fenris flipped the tag over again to reveal an address etched into the metal. He hadn't been here long, but the elf had always been quick to learn about his surroundings. Knight’s home wasn't far from here, a ten minute walk at most. Fenris scratched behind Knight’s ear as he planned the quickest way to get there. 

 

“Let's get you home, boy.” Fenris said, tugging on the dog’s collar in the direction of its home.

 

. . . 

 

Knight was a rather well-behaved dog. Fenris was able to walk him with ease even without a leash. It seemed that Knight was already use to walking without a leash. Nothing on the sidewalk distracted him from following Fenris even if it was the occasional person or squirrel that was in their path. 

 

Knight was also rather friendly. Whenever his hand came close to the dog, he would lick it as if Fenris was a tasty snack. It almost pained Fenris to let go of the dog once they have successfully returned him home. 

 

Almost. 

 

Maybe when he found a bigger apartment with a less bitchy landlord without a no-pet policy, he could adopt a mabari as well, Fenris thought. But that was far into the future, when he had truly escaped Danarius’s grasp. 

 

The unusual pair turned a corner and a quick check of the tag confirmed that they were right by Knight’s house. He had to pull the dog back from running on the neatly trimmed lawn. The house looked small but cozy, something you would expect to see in a home-living magazine. It was painted a pastel yellow, had a white roof and shutters, and looked absolutely adorable. Fenris envisioned the owner of both Knight and the house to be a little, old human lady with tiny spectacles and a plate of fresh-baked cookies. That would explain why Knight was able to slip away from her. He hoped imagined-old-lady would share those cookies with him as thanks for returning her beloved mutt. 

 

Knight didn’t need much prompting from Fenris to head to the front door, already recognizing it as they crossed on the freshly-mowed lawn. He wagged his tail in excitement as they walked up the brick pathway and stoop. Fenris’s hand barely brushed the wood of the door when Knight barked loudly. The shuffling of heavy feet could be heard inside along with a loud “One second!” The voice was deep and gruff, something that definitely didn't sound like it would come out of a little, old lady. 

 

His imagination wasn't left to wonder long when the door opened with a loud  _ bang _ as it hit the wall behind it. In the doorway stood a muscular, burly man with a beard that would make any dwarf jealous. Specks of red paint stained his flannel shirt and black hair, the most noticeable one being a splash across the bridge of his nose. He looked confused as to why a strange-looking elf such as Fenris would be at his front door, until he looked down. 

 

“Knight! You stupid mutt, what are you doing out here?!” The human cried out, kneeling down to his dog’s eye level and mushing Knight’s face with his hands. Fenris wasn't fluent in dog language, but the bark Knight let out upon being reunited with his owner sounded happy. 

 

“I found him wandering by my apartment complex.” Fenris piped up. 

 

“Really? Shit, and to think what would happen if this nice man hadn't found you.” He cooed to his dog. The burly man stood up at full height and outstretched his hand to him. “I'm Hawke, by the way.”

 

Fenris took Hawke’s hand into his own for a shake, noting how large the human’s hand felt in his. “My name is Fenris. And just to clarify, I wouldn't really call myself nice, I wasn't doing anything today.”

 

Hawke pulled Knight inside, who trotted to the back of the house. “But you didn't have to, and I think that makes you a nice person.”

 

Maker, the way this man smiled at him and kept insisting the goodness of his nature, it made him seem too good to be true. He certainly looked the part. Hawke looked like he stepped out from a commercial or a nature magazine, all he was missing was an axe slung casually over his shoulder. 

 

Fenris realized he was too silent for too long, coughing awkwardly in his hand. 

 

“I don't mean to pry, but how did your dog, Knight, escape in the first place?” It was a question that had been plaguing Fenris ever since he saw the dog on his street. Hawke didn't look like a negligent owner, nor someone who would just let their pet wander. 

 

“Well, I was painting the house,” Hawke began with a sheepish grin (did he ever stop smiling?). “and I didn't want Knight to breath in the fumes and stepping all over the paint,” the image of the mabari gleefully running through the house brought a smirk to Fenris’s face. “so I let him outside in the backyard.”

 

The hairy man looked behind him, presumingly at the backyard. “There must be a hole in the fence, that or Knight dug his way out. Going to have to find out before he makes any more escape attempts.” 

 

“I wish I could repay you somehow.” Hawke starts, Fenris preparing to say he didn't need money, “could I offer you some coffee or tea inside? You did go through all the trouble to get here.”

 

Well that was something new. Fenris wasn't use to people inviting him inside their homes. He was usually the type you didn't want somewhere near your valuables, based on his whole look and demeanor. Yet when Hawke looked at him, there was no judgement in his eyes or any kind of forced smile. Only genuine gratefulness.

 

Against his better judgement, Fenris agreed. “I… would like that, if you don't mind.”

 

Hawke’s smile only turned broader, making Fenris wonder if the man’s cheeks were hurting. It was a nice smile though, and it was for him. That made his heart flutter. 

 

“Great, come on in! Oh, please mind the mess. You know, all these paint cans and crap. Luckily, the kitchen isn't being painted.”

 

Fenris couldn't help but chuckle. They've only known each other for a few minutes, but he could already tell Hawke was a goofy, endearing mess of a man. He stepped inside, the smell of fresh paint oddly pleasing to his nose. Hawke ushered him in the other room with Knight close behind, already asking the elf what kind of tea or coffee he liked. He had only been inside for a few moment, but Fenris felt this place was more of a home than his apartment or Tevinter ever was.

  
And oddly enough, the elf rather liked that. 

**Author's Note:**

> This is loosely based on true events that happened when I found a dog walking outside alone and returned it to its owner. Unfortunately, the owner wasn't a hot, muscular guy but a middle-aged mom. I got the idea for this fanfic when I told Emile over Skype about what happened and he said it would be a good FenHawke fanfic and his birthday happened to be a month away. 
> 
> Kudos and comments are appreciated!


End file.
